Spanish Grand Prix no longer boring thanks to tyre performances

Paint drying, sheep counting and Gus van Sant movies used to be runners-up to the Spanish Grand Prix when it came to the most effective means of boring yourself to death. Not in 2011.

Wet and mild: Vettel gets a soaking (Pic: EPA)

Although the DRS zone â at 830 metres the longest of the year so far â failed to serve up as many passing manoeuvres as China and Turkey, it was changing tyre performance that gave us position changes in the pits, on the track and a 0.63 second gap between first-placed Sebastian Vettel and bridesmaid Lewis Hamilton .

The mystery buttons were used to trigger maximum performance from Lewisâ Mercedes engine. But it wasnât quite enough. âThey [Red Bull] were massively quick,â moaned Lewis, âwith downforce through the last turn for all to see.â

On the podium: Renault team mates, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button (Pic:Action Images)

While Hamilton grabbed his MP4-26 by the carbon-fibre goolies and gave it beans, McLaren team-mate Jenson Button played, typically, a slow-burner by gambling on a three-stop strategy. It didnât work in Turkey, but it did this time around.

Having had âan absolutely disastrous startâ, dropping from fifth to 11th, he went to twinkle-toes mode, gently preserving his rubber boots before shooting past Mark Webber and Fernando Alonso with podium-bound gusto. What a recovery.

But, despite Kers issues which cost him pole and nagged him intermittently, Vettel kept his head down, made no mistakes and took his fourth win from five, holding off his closest rival Hamilton. But he had to roll his sleeves up and work for it.

For Fernando Alonso, fifth place was an anti-climax after leading at the start. But what a start. With massive cojones, the Spaniard was fired up in front of his home crowd and kept his foot in even when he was squeezed by Webber. It was one of the bravest starts I have ever seen.

Frankly, after entertainment like that, it doesnât matter where he finished. He should earn a third title just for that.